The present invention concerns a removable roof for a motor vehicle that can be inserted into a stowage space of a body of the motor vehicle in a state in which it is detached from the body of the motor vehicle, and which can be held in place using receptacles of the storage space and holding devices.
A removable roof, known from U.S. Pat. No. 2,215,363, can be moved through guide apparatuses from a closed position to an open position and vice versa. In the open position, the roof rests in a stowage space constructed as a trunk.
A roof of dimensionally rigid plastic that is detachable from a motor vehicle, known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,635,518, arches over a passenger space in an operating position, for example, between a windshield frame and a roll bar. In the position where it is removed from the motor vehicle, the aforementioned roof can be accommodated in a stowage space, which is covered by means of a hood. Receptacles that enclose the edges of the roof serve for the mounting the roof, whereby one of the receptacles includes a plastic section that can be moved into a position releasing the adjacent edge of the roof.
One object of this invention is to configure a removable roof of a motor vehicle in such a way that it can easily be inserted into a stowage space specified as to volume of a body of a motor vehicle. It is also an object to guarantee that the mounting in the stowage space for the roof is distinguished by simplicity and good function.
These objects are accomplished according to the invention by providing first and second roof elements which are separable in a median longitudinal plane of the body, with the first roof element and the second roof element insertable superposed into the receptacles of the stowage space and fixable in position using the holding devices. Additional features refining the invention are reflected by dependent claims. A process of inserting the removable roof into a storage space is also claimed.
Advantages primarily obtained with the invention are that the first roof element and the second roof element can be accommodated in a favorable position in a compactly designed stowage space due to their superposed arrangement using the receptacles and the holding devices. Moreover, it is advantageous that the first roof element is arranged as the lower roof element rotated by approximately 180° in relation to the construction position of the roof and the second roof element is arranged as the upper roof element in the construction position in the stowage space. The manual insertion process of both roof elements into the stowage space is facilitated by the receptacles that bound the corners of the roof elements in a form-locking manner. These receptacles are formed by contour section-bearing inserts of the stowage space so that at least one part of the receptacles is provided with contour sections for the upper and lower roof elements. Finally, the holding devices are represented as lashing elements, the ends of which interact by way of interposed gripping elements with vehicle-fast bracing members.